Wednesday, April 14 in ColoradoPikes Peak on the Cog RailwayColorado
page1page2
page3The view from the Colorado
Springs airport.That tall one with snow
is Pikes Peak, Cheyenne Mountain is second from left.(click
on any image for a larger view; click back to return)

Since 1891,
the Manitou and Pikes
Peak Railway has taken passengers to the 14,110 foot summit of Pikes
Peak, a journey of 8.9 miles one way. It's the world's highest cog
railroad, the highest Colorado railroad AND highest train in the United
States. The station is in Manitou Springs, 6 miles from Colorado
Springs.

climbing

Look at the changing angles
of the windows. The grade ranged up to 25%.

tree line

snow plow crew

Snow plow crew working ahead
of us

snow plow

The previous day, the train
trip almost ended here at Windy Point because the plow couldn't get through

Thank you, snow plow

the road

<----
Near the top, you can see the road up to Pikes Peak winding back and forth.

Think
you want to drive up?

Two-thirds
of the 20-mile road to the top is not paved. Don't look down.---->

the top

The end of the line--don't
look down again.

<----
new station

both closed by the snow

old station
---->

what goes up...

Seeing the tracks climbing
ahead made the height more real on the way up, but feeling the brakes fighting
off gravity tugging at the train on the way down was an even more intense
experience.

The engineer said the train
would come to an abrupt halt if it went faster than 9.3 mph. The
interpreter assured us that if the brakes holding back the train failed,
two springs would catch the train....Manitou Springs and Colorado Springs
at the bottom of the mountain.